Dr. Alex Verdooren - Rio Grande, Inc., USA

Dr. Verdooren is currently a manufacturing engineer at Rio Grande and holds an M.Sc. and Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Lehigh University. He is a certified Six Sigma Green Belt from the American Society for Quality. This is his second presentation at the Symposium.

Using Design of Experiments (DOE) to Study and Optimize Mass Finishing Processes

Using Design of Experiments (DOE) to Study and Optimize Mass Finishing Processes

Mass finishing of discs and stampings can be very challenging. They are made out of precious materials that possess high specific gravity (8.9−16) and relatively low Vickers hardness (50−65 HV). These intrinsic properties can pose difficulties in the finishing operation due to the high risk of impingement.

This paper focuses on a particular case study on mass finishing. The aim is guiding the reader in how to use the Design of Experiments (DOE) tool. DOE is used to develop experiments that can collect sound statistical data. At the end of the day, the user can have a better understanding of the mass finishing process, because the main factors that affect good finishing are determined via DOE.